


Wish Upon A Star

by Loor



Category: Alex Deleon - Fandom, Fueled by Ramen, The Cab
Genre: F/M, Falling for the boss, Romance, nanny - Freeform
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-12-21
Updated: 2014-12-21
Packaged: 2018-03-02 16:11:21
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,530
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2818280
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Loor/pseuds/Loor
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>If your heart is in your dream<br/>No request is too extreme<br/>When you wish upon a star<br/>As dreamers do</p>
            </blockquote>





	Wish Upon A Star

**Author's Note:**

> For Christmas. For love. For a friend as a gift. Orignally posted on Mibba in 2013.

Sighing, Emmah pinched the bridge of her nose when she noticed light coming from under the door of the living room. She hadn’t heard him come home, but she figured Alex must have left on the lights in the Christmas tree when going to bed. Again. ‘God, sometimes I wonder what he would do without me!’ she thought. She grabbed the door handle and swung open the door. Two steps into the living room and she stopped dead in her tracks.

It wasn’t the first time she found him like this, but Emmah was still taken aback by the sight of a sleeping Alex DeLeon on the couch. Two years she lived with him now. Two years she had been taking care of his baby girl and she still wasn’t used to the peacefulness that came from the otherwise so bouncy young man when he was asleep. As Emmah had predicted, the lights were still burning bright in the Christmas tree. The shimmering illuminated Alex’s skin, giving it an almost golden color. ‘Angel with a shotgun,’ Emmah couldn’t help but think with a smile when she noticed the remote Alex was still clutching in his hand.

For a few moments all Emmah could do was stare at Alex as he slept. She wondered if his skin would feel as warm as the soft glow from the Christmas tree made it look. In her mind her fingers gently caressed his cheek.

A sound of an explosion coming from the TV speakers shook Emmah out of her trance. Alex stirred, but the sound didn’t wake him. ‘Get a grip on yourself!’ Emmah scolded herself in her head. ‘You’re his daughter’s nanny, be professional and don’t stand here drooling over your boss!’

Before her thoughts could drift off again, Emmah tiptoed to Alex. Carefully she sat down beside him on the edge of the couch and pried the remote from his hands. She motioned it towards the tv and with a few clicks found what she was looking for. Carefully she put the remote on the coffee table and turned towards Alex again. She gently put a hand on his chest and shook him lightly. “Alex, wake up,’ she said. Her voice came out a whisper.

The man on the couch stirred lightly, but didn’t seem to wake up. “Alex, wake up!” she tried again. Her voice was louder this time, the shaking of her hand a little more harsh. It didn’t miss its effect, as the boy on the couch slowly opened his eyes. He blinked a few times, as if he needed a moment to figure out where he was. “What’s the matter? Is something wrong with Frankie?” he asked. He sounded tired, but even just waking up the concern sipped through his voice as his hands came up to rub the sleep out of his eyes.

“Nothing’s the matter. Frankie is with her mom, who will be dropping her off tomorrow morning, remember sleepyhead?” Emmah immediately consoled him. “I just don’t want you to sleep on the couch all night. Your back will be killing you in the morning.”

Letting out a small sigh of relief, Alex took a glance at the clock above the fireplace. It informed him it was close to midnight. He groaned, but made no effort to get up. “I don’t want to move. And why are you still awake? Shouldn’t you be catching up on sleep while the little rugrat isn’t around?”

“You make it sound like your daughter is a monster! I’ve said it before and I said it again, it’s just the terrible twos, she’ll pass this stage soon enough,” Emmah informed Alex with a grin. “And I’m still awake because I just finished writing an essay for English Lit. And I felt like I deserved some relax time before going to bed. So I’m going to watch the Once Upon A Time episode I taped earlier. You, on the other hand,” she said while pinning a finger to Alex’s chest, “you need to get up early tomorrow morning. I don’t want to ‘The Ex’ to find another reason to wrongly accuse you of not taking care of your daughter properly.” The quote marks she made when Emmah mentioned Alex’s ex earned her a grin. “Besides, you are hogging the best spot to watch TV. I want it, so you need to move your ass and go to bed!”

Her statement earned Emmah a light slap against the back of her head. “Language! You’re supposed to set a good example for my daughter!” Alex playfully scolded her. After another light shove, he finally moved to get up.

Emmah watched him stretch a bit when he slowly sat up straight. She was so focused on his movement and the little part of skin that was revealed when his shirt rose up that his next words took her by surprise. “I’ll wait up for you!” he said with a wink.

“Don’t get my hopes up!”

Emmah regretted the words as soon as they left her mouth. She could just refrain herself from slapping her hand against her forehead. She tried to hide her embarrassment with a grin. Even though not so deep down she knew that she meant every word of it. There was no denying that she was attracted to Alex. When she had gotten this nanny job, she had been incredibly excited to be able to work for one of her favorite musicians. But the longer she worked for Alex, the more she regretted ever accepting the job. Because the more time she spend with Alex, the more she realized that there was so much more to him than just a beautiful voice and a pretty face. He was kind and caring. He loved his daughter more than anything. He was a lot more intelligent than most people expected from him. And his silly jokes could always light up even the worst days. Alex had everything Emmah looked for in a boy, which was exactly why she regretted taking the job. Because if there was one thing that she had learned from her brief training at the nanny agency, it was that it is not done to have feelings for your boss. No matter how many 90s sitcoms tell you otherwise.

Alex didn’t seem to notice Emmah’s internal battle. Or if he did, he chose not to mention it. Instead he finally rose to his feet. “I wouldn’t dare!” he assured her with a smile before pressing a small kiss to the top of her head. Emmah could just refrain herself from telling him that this was not helping her to keep her hopes down. Instead biting her lip, she watched Alex head off to his bedroom without another word.

Forty-five minutes later, Emmah’s skin still burned where Alex’s lips had touched her so briefly. Even though she loved Once Upon A Time, it had been hard to focus on the scenes unfolding on the tv screen with her mind constantly wandering to Alex. Even going to bed seemed such a hard task now, as her mind kept replaying the past couple of weeks. Putting up the Christmas tree together with Alex. Hot chocolate late at night. Decorating stockings together to hang above the fireplace. Watching Alex play with Frankie, taking care of his beautiful little girl.

“I just wish I was his girl too,” Emmah silently whispered, staring at the star atop the Christmas tree. With a sigh she turned off the lights in the Christmas tree and left the living room.

“Good night, Emmah!”

Emmah was still a little lost in thought and the words startled her when they reached her through the dark hallway. It took her a moment to realize they were coming from Alex’s room. She furrowed her brow as she peaked her head across the doorpost, only to find Alex focused on a book in his hands.

“Why are you still awake?”

“I told you I would wait up for you!” Alex informed her. He didn’t bother looking up, but Emmah didn’t miss the beginning of a smile at the corners of his mouth. She felt her cheeks heat up and she was grateful Alex wasn’t looking at her. She wasn’t sure how to respond to his statement.

Just as she decided she should just say goodnight to Alex, he patted the spot next to him on the bed. His eyes remained on the book in his hands, but Emmah knew that his focus has shifted from the book to her. She contemplated her next move for a short moment. She knew it was probably a bad idea to give in to his request. But she couldn’t help herself. Before her brain made the decision to enter the room, her legs were already moving. And before she knew what was happening she had positioned the spare pillow against the headboard and was leaning back against it.

“What are you reading?”

“The Voice. It’s a Sinatra biography.”

‘Of course!’ Emmah thought to herself as a smile graced her face. ‘The man named his daughter after him, what else would he be reading?’

A comfortable silence surrounded the pair for a few moments. Emmah only realized how tired she was when Alex spoke again and she realized she had been dozing off. His words, however, had her wide awake again. “I’m sorry,” he said.

“Sorry for what?” Emmah wondered out loud.

“For letting you spend Christmas Eve alone while I spend the night rehearsing with the guys. For keeping you here during the holidays. I know how much you wanted to see your family again!”

Even though Alex’s eyes were still on the book in his hands, Emmah still shot him a smile. “Hey, don’t worry about it. It never snows around here. Nobody could have predicted that this year there would be so much snow that the airport is closed. I’ll visit my parents some other time. It’s not your fault.”

“Still,” Alex insisted, “I shouldn’t have let you spend Christmas evening by yourself. Christmas Eve should be spend with family or friends, not working on some assignment for college. I should’ve just cancelled rehearsal. Have the guys spend time with their families and spend my own evening with you. It’s just…”

Alex hesitated for a moment, looking for the right words to say. Emmah chose this moment to speak up again. “I get it, Alex, I really do,” she assured him. “It must be hard, suddenly being alone on Christmas Eve after the years you spend with Frankie’s mom. And I wasn’t here last year, so I understand it must have been lonely and you didn’t want to go through that again this year. And I get to spend the actual day of Christmas with your family and Frankie. And you. You are letting me be part of your family and that’s all I could ever ask for.”

Alex still wasn’t meeting her gaze, but Emmah could see relief written all over his face. She probably shouldn’t think too much into it, but it made her insanely happy that he was so worried about her. That he cared so much for her.

“You always know what to say to make me feel better.” Alex paused an instant, as if he was searching for the right words again. Then he said, “I don’t tell you this nearly enough, but this is nice. I like having you around.”

It was Emmah’s turn to look away now. She could hear the man next to her shift and turn, but she looked everywhere but at him. Her gaze ended on the framed pictures of Frankie standing on the dresser. It caused her to say, “Just doing my job, right?”

“That’s not what I mean.” The words were soft, almost a whisper.

When Emmah slowly turned to look at him, she found Alex a lot closer than he had been fore. His book had been put away and there were only inched between their bodies. Her body decided to react to the closeness by rushing too much blood to her cheeks. With a shaky exhale she managed to ask, “Then what do you mean?” She was not sure if she want to hear the answer.

“I mean this. Us,” Alex said, motioning his hand back and forth between the two of them. “All of it. Late night talks about everything and nothing at all. Knowing that Frankie is in good hands with you. You fitting in perfectly with the guys and their girls. My family appreciating and loving you. Walks in the park and realizing it has always been you who was meant to push my kids’ stroller.”

“I... Alex, what are you trying to say?” Emmah wanted to know. She refused to let herself get her hopes up, surely she must have misunderstood. Her heart missed a beat when Alex grabbed her hand and intertwined their fingers.

“I am trying to say that you have become so much more than a nanny in these two years since we met. You’ve become a shoulder to cry on, but also the spark to lighten up my day. You’re my best friend and the one I want to wake up next to in the morning, Emmah.”

“Pinch me, please,” Emmah blurted out in response.

Alex frowned deeply, clearly confused. “What?”

“Pinch me, so that I’m sure that I’m not the one that has fallen asleep on the couch. Pinch me, so I know that I’m not dreaming about being in a 90s sitcom and having my boss tell me he loves me only to take it back later. Because it’s surreal to have my wildest dreams come true.” Emmah knew she was rambling, but she had to get the words out before she chickened out and ran to hide in her room.

Alex laughed in response, causing Emmah’s heart to skip another beat. She was sure she wouldn’t ever get tired of hearing that laugh. “It’s not a dream,” he assured her with a smile. He didn’t pinch her, but his fingers gently caressed her cheek instead. The shivers that ran through her spine let her know he wasn’t lying.

Alex leaned in closer and when he spoke again Emmah could feel his breath dance across her lips. “And I wouldn’t dare to think of taking back what I said. It would make both of us miserable, cause I cannot stand lying to you.”

With a smile, Emmah opened her mouth to respond. The words, however, got lost on her tongue, never made it past her lips, as Alex chose that exact moment to completely close the distance between them.

And it felt perfect and right and everything Emmah ever dreamed of. She always thought fireworks only happened in books, but she clearly hadn’t met the right man yet.

“Merry Christmas,” Alex whispered against her lips with a grin when he finally broke the kiss.

“Merry Christmas!” Emmah repeated with a matching smile. She quickly leaned in for another kiss.

‘Maybe,’ Emmah found herself thinking right before she fell asleep, Alex’s arms wrapped around her tightly, ‘Maybe Fran Fine wasn’t so wrong after all.'


End file.
